Saturday, August 18, 2012

New Old Floor

   Awhile back I posted about finding this flooring on Craigslist.  The lady who had it said she bought it 40 years ago in Ohio, packed it in postal service shipping boxes, and left it all outside... Not the proper way to store natural wood.  It's quarter sawn oak.  It has warped a bit, and some of the ends have some sort of rot that looks like it burned.  But, 600 square feet for $120 was worth the risk.
   Some of the boards have to get trimmed, and a few are discarded completely.  I have a stack of boards that are partially good that are set aside for the occasional short piece needed.  I started with a perfectly flat brand new subfloor, and these boards get nailed AND glued down.  AnnaMarie was very clear she wants them put down in a random mix of light and dark so they are organized in stacks so I can quickly grab the one that goes best.  It's going really slowly.

   There are all kinds of tricks people use to distress wood in an attempt to get this look.  WE have the real thing!  It looks great.  I wish there was enough to do the upstairs too.